H O W D O TH E Y DO IT?
S o m e a m a zing facts about Nation al Z oo Re s ide n t s :
CHEETAHS CAN CLOCK UP TO 60 MPH, WITH A SINGLE
STRIDE SPANNING 23 FEET.
THE RUPPELL’S GRIFFON VULTURE CAN SOAR TO
HEIGHTS OF 36,000 FEET — A JETLINER.
SEA LIONS CAN HOLD THEIR BREATH UNDERWATER FOR
UP TO 20 MINUTES.
ZEBRAS ARE SOLID BLACK AT BIRTH. THEIR WHITE
STRIPES DEVELOP AS THEY GROW.
MOST ZOO ANIMALS LIVE LONGER IN CAPTIVITY THAN
THEY DO IN THE WILD.
AMPHIBIANS ARE FACING MASS EXTINCTION, WITH 32
PERCENT OF SPECIES AT RISK, DUE TO A FUNGUS.
N AT I O NAL ZOO V ISIT OR ’S G U ID E:
Arrive early Get there before 10 a.m. ahead of the crowds. (Gates
open at 8 a.m.) Bonus: Many species are more active in the morning,
including the giant pandas, the zoo’s most sought-after residents.
Follow zoo etiquette Keep your voice low. Stay on your side of
the fence. Don’t provoke the animals.
Take a guided highlights tour Friends of the National Zoo offers
a free daily walking tour. Two-hour outings depart at 9:45 a.m.
from the Visitor Center near the zoo’s main entrance at 3001
Connecticut Ave., NW. In addition, multiple short presentations
are offered at various exhibits. Check the visitor center or online
at nationalzoo.si.edu/visit/tours for updates.
trolling the wide, meandering pathways of Washington’s National Zoo, you might think
you’re here to simply look at the animals. But take note: They’re looking at you, too.
Whether it’s an orangutan teetering 40 feet overhead on the “O-Line,” or a sleek Siberian tiger
lounging in his moated enclosure, or an Asian elephant lumbering along a quarter-mile path,
prepare to not only see, but to be seen.
Modern zoos, including the 129-year-old National Zoo, have evolved in recent decades, to
enhance the animals’ experience.
FLYWASHINGTON.COM 66 SUMMER 2018
“It’s all about choice,” says zoo spokesperson
Devin Murphy. “Every species has a choice
about where they want to be. And it’s up to
them to decide.”
Zoos are incorporating more interactive
elements, too. At the National Zoo, for
instance, you can take your mark and compare
your speed to that of a cheetah, the world’s
swiftest land animal. Or play tug of war with an
orangutan (prepare to lose). Or hop on a giant
scale with friends to see how many of you it
takes to equal the weight of an elephant.
Admission to the zoo is free, so it’s already
one of Washington’s great bargains. But
there’s added value in taking the daily
highlights tour (also free) led by volunteers of
the non-profit Friends of the National Zoo.
On a bright Sunday morning in early spring,
volunteer Jason Clock sets out from the
Visitor Center with a group of nine visitors
in tow. First stop is Africa — or African
exhibits, anyway. We stop to gaze at a herd of
majestic scimitar horned oryx. Once plentiful
in the Sahara, they’d be extinct in the wild
if it weren’t for breeding programs like the
National Zoo’s, Clock tells us.
Conservation is a theme in the narrative.
Signage at each of the exhibits indicates the
degree to which that animal is threatened. It’s
daunting to learn just how many species are
endangered. And no surprise, human activity
— whether by encroaching on habitats or
killing animals for food or trophies — is
usually the culprit.
One species that is winning the battle is the
giant panda. In 2016, its status was upgraded
from “endangered” to “vulnerable.” At
the National Zoo, the pandas also win the
popularity contest, with a full 80 percent of
visitors making a beeline to see them. The first
breeding pair arrived in 1972, and were instant
celebrities. The current A-list couple, Mei
Xiang and Tian Tian, arrived in 2000 and are
leased to the zoo by the Chinese government
for $1 million a year. One of their offspring has
already been returned to China. A second cub,
Bei Bei, born in 2015, will remain at the zoo
until the age of four.
When we arrive at the Giant Panda Habitat,
there’s a line to get in the door of the animals’
house. As we wait, we’re entertained by two
red pandas frolicking on a tree branch outside
the building. Clock admits a preference for